SASSA Clears Up R140 Million Grant Payments Issued to 75,000 Deceased Individuals

The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) has attributed the payment of R140 million in social grants to approximately 75,000 deceased beneficiaries to delays in death registrations and system limitations.

On Wednesday, Sassa unveiled its audit action plan to the parliament’s portfolio committee on social development, following a financial audit without qualification from the Auditor-General for 2023/24.

Sassa’s chief financial officer, Tsakeriwa Chauke, explained that the challenge arises from the timing of payment processing. At the end of each month, Sassa generates payment files for the upcoming month. However, some beneficiaries may die between the generation of the payment file and the actual payment, resulting in their inclusion in the payment run.

Chauke mentioned that the agency is developing a new system, scheduled for testing in April, that will enable bulk recalls of payments to beneficiaries confirmed deceased by the Department of Home Affairs.

Read: Sassa’s strategies to reduce long queues and enhance the grant payment process

Brenton van Vrede, executive manager for grant operations at Sassa, stated, “While we are fully aligned with Home Affairs, we still rely on citizens to report deaths.”

He noted that while most death cases are recorded, a small percentage fall through the cracks, amounting to 0.02% of the total grant budget.

Sassa is also examining potentially fraudulent disability and old-age grant payments made to 486 beneficiaries at the Cradock Local Office from 2018 to 2023. Chauke confirmed that these payments have been suspended and that the Hawks are investigating the officials involved.

“In light of the preliminary assessment, we will determine whether there’s a need for disciplinary actions if Sassa officials are implicated, along with a comprehensive criminal investigation,” Chauke stated.

Irregular expenditure has decreased

The agency’s irregular expenditure reached its peak at R1.8 billion in 2018/19. For 2023/24, it stands at R34.2 million, while it has decreased further to R1.1 million for 2024/25. Chauke credited the decrease to enhanced oversight and improved supply chain management training.

The R1.1 million irregular expenditure for 2024/25 included:

• R1 million in the Western Cape for unauthorized cleaning services;
• R77,000 in the Eastern Cape due to an “unapproved variation order”; and
• R49,000 in the Northern Cape paid to a doctor with an expired contract.

The Auditor-General also noted five instances of material irregularities in the 2023/24 financial statements:

• R74 million paid to the disputed Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) in 2018 for services not rendered;
• R316 million overpaid to CPS, which the High Court in Pretoria determined should be repaid to Sassa;
• R150 million in R350 SRD grants disbursed to ineligible recipients;
• R7.8 million awarded to a company for photocopy machines in the Eastern Cape; and
• R1.7 million in fraudulent social grant payments made by Sassa personnel.

Chauke indicated that the material irregularities from 2023/24 have now been resolved and will not appear in the upcoming 2024/25 audit. The CPS situation is currently with the company’s liquidators, while the other material irregularities are under legal scrutiny and investigation.

Read: Sassa recovers R150m in ineligible grants payments [Oct 2024]

“The Auditor-General evaluated all the measures we’ve implemented and was pleased with the management’s handling of these issues,” Chauke stated.

Insufficient record keeping:

The Auditor-General discovered that not all grant recipients were listed in Sassa’s Beneficiary Records Management (BRM) system. Sassa utilizes two databases – BRM and the Social Grant Payment System (Socpen) – which are not fully synchronized.

Chauke noted that Sassa’s internal audits uncovered discrepancies and missing information in some cases. He stated they would conduct a population analysis to compare records in Socpen against BRM. “Any exceptions we identify will be addressed,” he assured.

Read:
Extensive fraud in Sassa’s grant system [Oct 2024]
Investigation into social grant fraud ends in failure [Nov 2024]

The Auditor-General also highlighted problems with the manual registers employed in local offices. Chauke explained that when individuals visit a Sassa office, their details are logged in a manual register. Auditors found that some beneficiaries recorded in these logs did not appear in the agency’s internal control and assurance system.

This raised concerns about the completeness of inquiry records and whether all cases were appropriately documented in Sassa’s digital systems. Chauke stated that Sassa is actively working to fill these gaps and is gradually eliminating manual registrations, except in cases where systems are down.

MPs react

Committee chair Bridget Masango (DA) questioned whether Sassa had adequately focused on internal auditors. “By strengthening our internal audits and responding to their findings, we could reduce the number of issues identified by the Auditor-General,” she suggested.

Stanley Ramila (ANC) acknowledged efforts to combat fraud but cautioned against officials resigning to evade disciplinary measures. “When this happens, it indicates these officials have deemed themselves guilty,” he remarked, proposing that pension payouts be withheld until cases are resolved.

Read: SRD grants: Exploring the system’s vulnerabilities to fraud [Dec 2024]

Paulnita Marais (EFF) criticized the sluggish pace of fraud investigations. “Some of these cases are dating back to 2018 and remain unresolved to this day,” she noted.

Chauke reassured parliament that progress is underway. Despite ongoing challenges, he emphasized that Sassa is taking measures to enhance financial controls and improve audit outcomes.

© 2025 GroundUp. This article was first published here.

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